Pasta is traditionally prepared by formulating a fresh pasta dough, and then boiling the dough in water to a minimal extent before consumption. As a result, the pasta has an appealingly fresh taste and texture. However, a major drawback of utilizing fresh pasta dough is that it has a high water content, which supports the growth of detrimental microorganisms, and, therefore, spoils rapidly if not used immediately. The fresh pasta dough is usually meant to be made, purchased and cooked in a short period of time. Often fresh pasta dough is refrigerated as a way of prolonging its life. But, even at low storage temperatures, fresh pasta dough has a very limited term.
One attempt to remedy the situation has been the provision of conventional dry pasta such as macaroni, spaghetti and noodles consisting basically of dough made with one or more of semolina, farina, or another flour, and water. The pasta is formed by extrusion into a variety of sizes and shapes, and dried to a moisture content of 12% or less to obtain a hard product for storage. At a moisture level of 12% or less, such dry pasta will not readily support the growth of mold, yeast or other spoilage microorganisms. Thus, the pasta, if kept dry, can be stored without refrigeration for long periods of time. However, the dried pasta must be cooked relatively extensively to effect re-hydration, often to the extent that the weight of the rehydrated pasta is, for example, 2.6 times that of its dry weight, and typically the rehydrated pasta does not simulate the taste and texture of a fresh pasta.
In another attempt, pasta has been precooked and provided in cans, typically with tomato sauce, meat sauce, gravy, meatballs, or the like. Canned pasta-containing products typically are prepared as follows: blanching dried pasta in boiling water to soften and hydrate the pasta to a water content of about 65% to 75%; filling the blanched pasta into a can together with sauce, meat, or the like; sealing the can; and retorting the sealed can under time-temperature conditions sufficient to provide a sterile product--typically about one hour at 115.degree. C. Since the pasta is hydrated to a water level above 12%, the pasta has a water content which will support the growth of spoilage organisms. Therefore, the canned pasta-containing products must be subjected to relatively severe heat processing conditions in order to produce a sterile product, which is then maintained in the sterile state due to sealing in the can, so as to protect against microorganism-spoilage to make a commercially feasible product. Processing under these severe conditions results in a taste and texture which is less than optimal, and limits the acceptability of canned pasta-containing products.
Pasta is also available in a frozen, raw state which can be freshly boiled in the home immediately prior to consumption. However, freezing adds considerable expense to the manufacturing and delivery costs of the products. Moreover, frozen products are perceived by many consumers to be less desirable then products prepared directly from a fresh, unfrozen dough.
The art has long been searching for a pasta alternative to the foregoing. Such a pasta product should have an extended life at room temperature or under normal conditions of refrigeration, be easily prepared and stored, have substantially no off-flavor in a state suitable for consumption, be free of surrounding liquid in the stored condition, and (when in a state suitable for consumption) be at least as palatable and appear as pleasing as products prepared from conventional dry pasta.
In past attempts to achieve some of these desired attributes, it has been proposed that pasta could be treated with acid to yield a suitable product.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,828,852 apparently relates to a process for the preparation of precooked pasta which requires boiling pasta in acidified water, soaking a partially cooked pasta in acidified water and coating the cooked pasta in acidified cream. The acids mentioned include malic, acetic, fumaric, tartaric, phosphoric and adipic.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,734,291 apparently discloses a process for preparing shelf-stable pasta by partially blanching and hydrating pasta, inserting the pasta into a container, adding an aqueous acidic solution, sealing the container and sterilizing the contents of the sealed container. Specific acids mentioned are fumaric, citric, tartaric, malic and lactic.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,659,576 apparently relates to pasta stabilized against microbial decomposition by adding acid to the raw pasta dough before making the pasta. Specific acids mentioned in this patent include acetic, citric, ascorbic, malic, fumaric, and tartaric.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,597,976 also apparently relates to use of acid in the raw pasta dough. Acids mentioned in this patent include citric, fumaric, lactic, malic, tartaric, sulfuric, hydrochloric and phosphoric acids.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,599,238 and 4,552,772 apparently relate to methods for preparing cooked pasta by boiling the pasta, washing the boiled pasta with water and immersing the boiled pasta in an aqueous solution containing citric acid, lactic acid and table salt, and then packaging and heat- sterilizing the pasta in an aqueous solution.
JP-A-6 307 770 apparently describes the preparation of a noodle which contains an acid preservative in its dough. The preservative includes a food-acceptable organic acid, a salt of such an acid and a water-soluble macromolecular polysaccharide or chitosan. The organic acid may be citric, tartaric, malic, fumaric, lactic, acetic or gluconic acid. The polysaccharide may be alginic acid or sodium alginate. However, the polysaccharide appears to be used solely as a texturizing agent. Based on an analysis of this application, it is believed that the free polysaccharide is not present as part of the final product since the polysaccharide appears to be neutralized by the organic acid salt. Moreover, there is no report of stability of the product beyond 10 days.
Thus, it can be seen that there have been many attempts to develop acid-treated pasta products which can be stored effectively for an extended period of time. However, these attempts typically involve treatment with conventional food acids--i.e., generally low molecular weight inorganic or organic acids--and, at least as far as is known, none has resulted in a product with all of the attributes required of a premium pasta product, namely (i) extended life at room temperature or normally prevailing refrigeration temperatures, (ii) ease of preparation and storage, (iii) freedom from the substantial presence of ambient liquid in the stored condition, (iv) substantially no off-flavor when in a condition suitable for consumption, and (v) when in such condition, palatability and appearance comparable to, or better than, products prepared from conventional dry pasta. For example, while some conventional acid-treated products may have a somewhat extended storage- or shelf-life, they have an acid taste. Indeed, it would seem to be inevitable that a pasta product treated with acid will have an acid taste.
Provision of a premium pasta product having the full complement of advantageous features described above would be a substantial advance over the technology discussed heretofore.